MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Argentina February Congressional inflation index more that double the official rate

Gil Lavedra: “the percentage difference with the Indec index is one of the highest in record”

In contrast with the 0.5% inflation reported by the Argentine government’s controversial stats office, Indec, the index based on private estimates and released by opposition lawmakers climbed to 1.23% with an accumulated 25.27% in the last twelve months.

The head of the Radicales group Ricardo Gil Lavedra said on Thursday that “the percentage difference between the official Indec and the private consultants is one of the highest since we began making the monthly announcements”.

He added “this should have not happened following on the price-agreements for some ingredients of the basic basket, with the main supermarket chains”.

“We don’t see the government implementing a sustainable policy to try and seriously contain inflation. The freezing of some prices could have some momentary effects but is not a serious solution since the government has not diminished monetary expansion rhythm”, pointed out lawmaker Gil Lavedra in reference to the Central bank expansive policy.

“We don’t see any improvements either in manufacturing or construction which continue to lose ground and we presume that the artificial freezing of prices could bring even worse consequences because it is like trying to contain a pressure cooker”, said the opposition lawmaker and member of the Freedom of Expression committee.

On Wednesday Indec announced that the consumer price index in the second month of the year was 0.5%, basically because of the price agreements reached by the government of President Cristina Fernandez with supermarkets and the home appliances main distributors.

The agreement originally established from February first for sixty days is expected to be extended, particularly since this year the Argentine government faces mid term elections next October, decisive for the last two years of the Cristina Fernandez administration, and even her chances of a constitutional amendment to open the way for her third consecutive four year term.